


Are You Pawsitive?

by AstraBabe



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cats, Domestic, F/F, Fluff, Kyalin Solstice Exchange 2020, Modern AU, Moving In Together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:55:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28228740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AstraBabe/pseuds/AstraBabe
Summary: Lin and Kya have been dating for about a year now, but Kya suddenly becomes cat crazy. Lin swears she doesn't want a cat, but Kya has other things in mind and a big decision to make.
Relationships: Kyalin, Lin Beifong/Kya II
Comments: 24
Kudos: 85
Collections: 2020 KyaLin Solstice Exchange





	Are You Pawsitive?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [catfishcalamity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/catfishcalamity/gifts).



> Happy solstice swap, Adam! It was supposed to be short, and well, 6k words later...oops! Enjoy <3
> 
> Modern AU where Lin is chief of police and Kya is a nurse
> 
> cw skin picking

“Kya, for the thousandth time, I said no” 

Kya and Lin have been dating for a little more than a year now and, for the last month and a half, Kya had been trying to convince Lin that they should get a cat. More specifically, a kitten. She’d mention it constantly, send Lin cute cat videos throughout the day, and spend their evening before bed browsing PetFinder. Lin did not know what brought on this sudden cat craze, but she was staunchly against it. Kya would ask, and each time Lin would say some variation of _We’re both too busy. You’re back and forth between Air Temple Island and here all the time. Who’s going to take care of it? It’s not staying here. What if it pees on something?_ She just wouldn’t budge.

They were both lying in bed doing their respective reading and scrolling for the night. Only the lamp on the side table was on, making it just bright enough for Lin to do some light reading. 

“But this one is new! And look at his little face!” Kya turned her ipad towards Lin. There was a little black kitten with a white mustache marking on the screen.

“Cute,” She continued to read without looking up. 

“He’s got a little mustache.”

Lin closed her book to look. 

“Well, he does have a mustache.”

“His name is,” Kya paused to read “Stache.”

“Creative.” Lin said, casting a furtive glance back at her book. Before she could pick it back up, Kya reached over and squeezed Lin’s arm.

“Can we please do our usual tomorrow? I want to meet him.”

Their “usual” started once when the two happened to be nearby their local animal shelter and Kya begged to go. Now for the last four weekends, Kya would drag Lin to the shelter to see the new kittens. Lin knew from the accident reports alone that Republic City was crawling with strays. Kittens came in and moved out of the shelter fast.

“Fine.”

Lin didn’t want to go, but Kya would ask and she would always say yes (though reluctantly). Lin had her reasons why she didn’t want a cat but at the root of it, she just couldn’t see the point of owning a cat - or any type of pet for that matter. She didn’t dislike animals, but she hadn’t grown up with them and she just wasn’t interested in them. However, people didn’t tend to like that as an answer. It had the same effect as if she had said she disliked animals. She just wasn’t drawn to go up and ask strangers if she could pet their dog or to _pspspsps_ at cats to come near her. Instead of saying just that, Lin found good reasons as to why they couldn’t get one. _Hopefully our shelter visits would get Kya’s cat craze out of her system_ , she thought. 

“Oh, you’re gonna love Stache!” Kya put on her reading glasses, “It says here that he is a ‘Super fluffy, fun loving boy who loves nothing more than playing and scratches. He is super purr-y and will fall asleep in your lap if you pet him for long enough’ Doesn’t he sound like a cutie?”

“Sure does,” Lin said flatly “but remember –“

“We’re only looking, I know I know.”

**-Saturday Morning-**

Bright and early the next day Kya and Lin were at their local animal shelter. The sun was out, the sky was blue, and the shelter smelled strongly of some unnamed cleaning agent poorly masking the scent of pee. The shelter expected Lin and Kya at this point and were accustomed to their weekend visits.

“Morning!” It was the shelter associate at the front desk that that greeted them. Knowing right away that they were here to see the cats, she asked a nearby volunteer to guide them to the kitten room. 

“Why don’t you go ahead, I’ll meet you in the cat playroom.” Lin said to Kya.

“Sure,” she agreed and turned to follow the volunteer.

Lin walked herself to the cat playroom to take her usual seat. Their visits had been the same every time. Kya would ask to play with some of the kittens, and Lin would sit on the same chair in the corner and watch Kya play with them. Kya would goad Lin into petting or holding them and once in a blue moon successfully convince her to play with those feather-on-a-string toys. Every time though, she just never felt as interested in the cats as her girlfriend. At least Kya seemed to have some fun. 

The cat playroom was a decent sized room where visitors could interact with cats they considered adopting. Additionally, the volunteers would turn some of their cats loose in the playroom for a few hours every day for enrichment. There were cat towers galore, a box of toys, scratching posts, and a few chairs for the visitors. On the front wall of the room near the door there was a large glass window so you could observe the cats that were out – or as Lin liked to say, to see which prisoners were out in the yard.

Lin entered the playroom, walking up to her usual chair when she noticed a long furry tail protruding from under it. She crouched down to find a longhaired grey cat curled up and dozing under the chair. She looked around to the other chairs in the room and when she looked back, the cat had opened it eyes. Groggily, it lifted its head to look directly at her. It had dusky blue eyes.

“Sorry,” Lin mumbled. She felt she had disturbed it and moved back to give it space.

It rose to its feet, sinking back into a stretch. It then turned its unwavering gaze to Lin. Without thinking, she extended her arm. The grey cat eyed her, quickly glancing from her face to her hand and back again. It paused before peeking out from under the chair. In the light, she could see it had long drooping whiskers and a few notches taken out of its ears. _Street cat_ , she thought. Lin watched its lithe form as it moved further out from underneath the chair. Fur collared its neck like a grey mane and fell in tumbles along its chest and belly. Gingerly, it approached her. It gave her hand a tentative sniff before ramming its head into her palm. 

“Do you want to be pet?” she said to the cat. 

Lin dropped from her crouch to kneel on the ground. The cat wove around her in a pattern, receiving a pet from its head to the tip of its tail before then pressing itself into her leg, purring contentedly. The cat did not stop, and neither did Lin. She got lost in the moment, and sat there for what felt like forever. Suddenly, the cat froze before retreating to the chair. 

“Wow, she let you pet her?” 

Lin looked behind and saw the shelter volunteer with Kya.

“She was just sitting under the chair here.” Lin shrugged.

“Who’s your friend?” Kya said.

“That’s Kumo. She’s doesn’t come up to just anyone.” the volunteer answered.

“Is Kumo pretty shy?” Kya asked.

“Yeah, she’s been here a while now, too. Probably about three years. She’s one of our old gals.”

“How old?” Lin asked.

“Probably nine. Can’t tell for sure, we don’t know her history. She was in rough shape when we got her. She used to be a stray. She’s a trooper, though.” the volunteer added. He looked to Kya, and then walked away.

“Did you get to see Stache?” Lin looked up at Kya.

“Yeah, he’s very cute. Someone else is set to adopt him, but the volunteer said we could still play with him. He’ll bring him out in a minute.”

“I’ll be in my corner here.” Lin glanced under the chair again but Kumo was gone.

**-Monday Evening-**

Monday evening Lin returned to her apartment at her normal time which was always later than Kya. Kya was often between her room on Air Temple Island, her job at the hospital, and Lin’s apartment. Early in their relationship, Lin would visit Kya’s more frequently and occasionally stay the night. However, they learned right away that may not be the best idea as its very hard to sneak your brother’s ex-girlfriend out of your room in the morning. They decided it might be better to spend more time at Lin’s instead. Then, Kya started to come over to her place more and more. So, Lin gave Kya her own set of keys as a sort of next step in their relationship. It was her way of saying this is your home, too.

“Kya, I’m home.”

Lin closed the door behind her, slipped off her work shoes, and into her house slippers. She headed towards the bedroom to change out of her uniform.

“Hey, honey” Kya called as she left the bedroom and met Lin right in front of the doorway. She gave Lin hug and a kiss but then would not move. 

“Can I get past you?”

“No.”

Lin looked at her funny.

“Is everything okay?” Suspicion in her voice. 

“Yep! Totally fine.”

“You’re sure.”

“Mmmhm”

“Positive?”

“In fact, I am very _paws-itive _.” Kya emphasized.__

____

__

Lin narrowed her eyes.

“What did you do.”

“You have to promise you won’t be mad.”

“What did you do?” Lin tried peeking behind Kya but she moved to block her view.

“Promise you won’t be mad?”

“I will pick you up if you do not move.” Lin warned. Lin, though much shorter than Kya, was a stronger due to her frequent tactical training. Whenever Kya was being a bit too sassy, she would threaten to pick her up.

“You didn’t promise.”

“Here I go.” She picked up her girlfriend, moved her a few feet, then set her down.

“What? You’re not even going to carry me to the bed?” She sounded disappointed. 

Lin looked around and saw it: a cat carrier and a cat bed on the floor. Lin’s eyes went wide.

“You did not.”

“Surprise!” 

“Kya!” Lin exclaimed.

“You’re mad.”

“Yes! I told you no cats! Who’s going to take care of it?”

“I thought we could take care of it together because I – “ 

“Kya, I don’t want a kitten scratching up my furniture ! And you can’t just leave it here, I’m going to have to take care of it. I don’t even have time for - “

“Lin, can you stop!” Kya interrupted, “Have you considered that there’s more to the cat?”

“You got two!”

“What? No, I mean that it’s not just a cat.”

“Explain.” she folded her arms.

“We’ve been dating for a year now. During our one-year anniversary, you gave me that spare key to your place. You said it was natural that if I was going to be over here more and more that I should have my own set. And I know you don’t like the fact that anyone else besides you has keys to your place.“

“Naturally. It makes it easier to get into. But I don’t mind you having them.” she paused, “I like it when you’re here.” Lin said quickly. She blushed a bit and looked away.

“Right, you said I should have them if I’ll be spending more time here.”

“Yes.” She was still confused. 

“You also said I couldn’t get a cat because neither of us is here enough. My room on Air Temple island is too small for a cat and I didn’t want to dump all the responsibility on you by leaving it at your place. So, now I’m ready to spend more time here and now we’ve got a cat.”

Lin looked up at Kya’s face. 

“What I’m saying is that I want to move in with you.”

“Oh,” 

Lin hadn’t considered that Kya’s sudden interest in a cat might’ve meant more than just infatuation with something cute. The two had essentially been living together for some time, even before she gave Kya her spare key. It had felt so normal to come home to her and wake up next to her, that it would almost feel strange if she weren’t here. Little things of Kya’s started accumulating around the apartment, too –her forgotten cups of tea she’d find throughout the apartment, her shoes right next to Lin’s by the front door, her toothbrush on the bathroom sink. All the little spaces in her home filled up with her things, little reminders of her presence. She knew Kya’s favorite spot on the couch, which mug she liked to drink tea from best, and even her favorite pillow on Lin’s bed. It just felt right seeing Kya scour the apartment for her misplaced reading glasses for the hundredth time or to see Kya’s face covered in toothpaste foam in the morning. So, maybe it was more than just a cat. Maybe it meant _I want to really do this with you, too_. 

“Maybe this is a bit fast for you. I know it’s only been a year,” Kya rubbed the back of her neck, “but I’ve known you your whole life. And you know I’ve loved you since we were teenagers, and you were still dating my brother!” Kya laughed and Lin got a bit red.

“Did you tell him?”

“Yes, I told Tenzin.” 

“What did you say?” Lin picked at her hands. 

“That we got a cat.” Kya smirked.

“Anything else?”

“That I wanted to spend my time here. With you.” Kya reached for her hand.

Like in most moments of emotional sincerity, Lin tended to freeze up. This did not make her good with words. Kya knew this and would always offer her hand, running her thumb along Lin’s knuckles. They were rough from both training and her tendency to pick at the skin on her hands when she was nervous. Kya didn’t mind, though. 

“Do you really mean that?” Lin’s eyes glanced from Kya’s hand to her face.

“Of course, I do. If you’re ready, I’m ready, too.” Kya said softly, maintaining eye contact.

Putting together that this was really happening, Lin wrapped her arms around Kya’s waist and pulled her into a kiss (Lin had to stand on her toes a bit just to reach her which Kya found endlessly endearing). Sometimes Lin still couldn’t believe she had a woman like this in her life.

Their kiss lasted for a few moments and after they pulled away Lin remembered the cat.

“So, where is it?” Lin said, looking around. 

“Funny story.” Kya tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Kya.”

“I let her out to get acquainted with the place and now I can’t find her.” 

“You already lost the kitten?”

“No, it’s not a kitten. It’s the grey cat you met the other day, Kumo.”

“The old cat?”

“Yeah, I’ve never seen you willingly go up to any of the cats there.”

“It was under my chair.” Lin shrugged, trying to play it off.

“So, you crouched down to pet her for five minutes?”

“You saw that?”

“Mmhm. I didn’t want to bring home just any cat. Sure, I love kittens, but the cat has to be compatible with both of us. I went to visit her again Sunday, and with some patience she started to come up to me, too.”

“Listen, I still don’t know how I feel about a cat.” She said, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Are you going to make me take her back?” Kya worried.

Lin wasn’t sure about the cat, but she wasn’t heartless either. She knew older cats rarely made it out of the shelter. Returning Kumo meant she’d likely never get to live in a loving home, especially if she’d really spent six years of her life on the streets.

“No, of course not.” Lin shook her head, “But you need to find her while I get changed.”

**-One Week Later-**

Kumo was still adjusting so she mostly spent her time hiding under chairs or the sofa. Besides feeding her and cleaning the litter box (which Kya and Lin traded off), it was almost like not having a cat and Lin certainly didn’t mind that. Kumo was quiet, slept most of the day, and didn’t get into any trouble. However, Lin had set certain cat rules and number one on the list was no cat in their bedroom. The bedroom door was to be closed every night and Kumo could sleep in her bed in the livingroom. 

However, one morning before work, as Lin woke up she felt a slight pressure on her chest. As she began to slough off her grog, she felt a poke right to her boob.

“Kya…?” She mumbled, eyes still closed.

Then, a lick against her cheek.

That fully woke her up. With a sharp inhale she opened her eyes and jolted her head off the pillow. Staring down at her was none other than Kumo, her paws planted on Lin’s chest. She made a pleasant _mrrrp_ sound.

“Get off of me!” Lin sat up, picking Kumo up and placing her on the floor. Lin then turned to Kya who her ipad poised on Lin. Lin temporarily disregarded the cat and was now more mad that she had been caught doing something cute on camera. 

“Delete it.” she shot Kya a glare. 

“No, you two are too cute.” Kya smiled smugly and lowered the ipad.

“Were you two planning this attack ahead of time?” Lin folded her arms.

“Oh, come here you grump.” Kya scooched closer to Lin, leaning shoulder to shoulder, “I woke up right before you and saw Kumo had let herself in. She was right next to you with her head on your chest. I had to get pictures. Look,” Kya opened up the photo app, and there they were. Photo after photo of that cat on the bed, making its way up the mattress to sit by Lin.

“Little sleepy Linny and our kitty.” Kya prodded.

“Your cat.”

“You’ll have to warm up to her eventually now that she lives with us.” She placed the ipad on her lap before leaning her head on Lin’s shoulder, repeating “ _Little sleepy Linny and our kitty_ ” in a sing-song voice.

Lin put her arm around Kya’s back and moved it to rest on her waist. She then used this opportunity to squeeze the soft spot right above the swell of Kya’s hips – her only weakness. Kya yelped in surprise and Lin grabbed the ipad. Turning her back to her girlfriend, she deleted as many cat photos as possible before Kya could manage to grab it back.

“You cheater!” 

It was Lin’s turn to smile smugly. Kya got out of bed, taking her ipad with her. She stopped in the doorway, turned her head, and said, “You got the photos, but you didn’t get the video.” before walking out.

“Video?” Lin said, moving to get out of bed. She got right up, still in her tank top and boxers, and threw her on her robe. She followed Kya to the kitchen where she was pouring Kumo some food.

“Yes, I got a little video too.” she said, back still turned to Lin.

“Please don’t post that on your Facebook.” she pleaded.

“Have some faith in me. I’m not going to post it to Facebook.” Kya put her hands on her hips.

“You say that then post terrible photos of me all the time. You’re always taking photos.”

“Terrible? Hey!”

“I mean unflattering. Or blurry. Or both”

“Well, I’m not going to post this one. It’s just for me.” Kya knelt down and pet Kumo while she ate. Kumo had warmed up to Kya during the week. While the cat did enjoy Kya’s presence, and being pet, she did not seem like the lap cat type. She spent most of the day hiding, slinking about under furniture or around the walls of the apartment. She only appeared when she wanted to be pet or when she wanted to be fed. When Kumo was hungry, Kya used the opportunity to do both.

“Ahem, can a woman get a little help here?” 

“Oh, of course” Lin moved to help Kya up from kneeling. She had trouble with her leg sometimes. Giving Kya both her hands, she pulled her up, though a bit unsteadily which caused her to fall into Lin’s arms.

“My hero!” Kya swooned, and ran her hand down Lin’s bicep.

“All right, all right,” Lin smirked, “but don’t change the subject here. I don’t want the cat in our bed. Or standing on my tits when I wake up.”

Kya stifled a laugh. 

“She probably just wanted you to give her breakfast. I haven’t seen her up on the bed before.”

“I don’t want it to become a habit.”

“Fine, no cat on the bed. But will you at least try interacting with her more?”

“We do just fine. I do my thing and she does hers.”

“Can’t you try playing with her or something?”

“Eh…”

“Can you try?” Kya was about to pout.

“Don’t you do it. That’s not fair.”

“Please? For me?” Kya gave her a wide sad-eyed look, a little frown, and a sad whimper. She always this when Lin was being a grouch and it always worked. 

“I’m not really an animal person,” Lin paused, “but I can try.” she sighed. 

“Thank you.” Kya gave her a kiss on the cheek then moved to start making her morning tea.

**-Later that Evening-**

“Kya, I’m home.”

As she closed the door, she expected to hear Kya’s familiar “hi, honey” in response but heard nothing. _Odd_. Placing the keys in the dish on the counter, Lin spied the note on the fridge. 

It read:

Might be a late night. If you’re home before me, plz feed Kumo!

₍⸍⸌̣ʷ̣̫⸍̣⸌₎  
♥ Kya  


_I can feed the cat. No problem._ She reached into the bottom cabinet, grabbed the bag of dry food, and poured the kibble into Kumo’s silver dish. _Done_. She had reached her Kumo interaction quota for the day so she put the bag back, and began to walk away. Then, she stopped just at the end of the kitchen. Kumo was nowhere in sight. _I can just leave the food here, she’ll get it when she’s hungry_. Lin attempted to leave the again but Kya’s words earlier stopped her. She wheeled around, back towards the cabinet. She reached for the cat food and mimicked what Kya did trying to get Kumo to come out to eat: Lin shook the bag a few times and in the sweetest, sing-songiest, baby-talk voice she could muster, said “ _Heeeeeeere, Kumo kitty! Dinner time, Kumo kitty!_ ” 

Then, like a fuzzy grey apparition, Kumo appeared. She moseyed over to the kitchen from behind the couch, ears perked and _mrrrrping_ in anticipation. Lin was surprised that seemed to work but she hoped her neighbors didn’t hear that through the walls. She would never be one of those people to baby-talk to their pets. Kumo appeared at her feet and began to crunch away at her kibble. Lin stood above her and watched for a minute before giving the cat a rough pat on the back and leaving to change out of her uniform. Kumo stopped eating and watched Lin walk away. When Lin finished changing, in the middle of the doorframe stood Kumo with her head cocked to one side.

“May I help you?”

“Mow.”

She stepped over Kumo and made her way to the couch. She began to get into her evening flow, setting up paperwork and her laptop on the coffee table and then getting her own dinner ready. She walked about the kitchen, going from fridge, to cabinet, to microwave to reheat some leftover soup. Kumo padded up and glared at her, meowing in frustration. Lin ignored it. So, Kumo kept meowing.

“Kumo, I just fed you. You’re not getting more.” Lin said, without looking down. _Can’t believe I’m talking to a cat_. The ding of the microwave drowned out Kumo’s pleas. She left the kitchen with her food. 

She sat down, eating and starting her paperwork. After about thirty minutes, she realized it had been quiet. Too quiet. 

“Kumo?” she called in her normal voice.

“ _Kuuuumooo!_ ” she called again, in the same voice she used to call Kumo to dinner. Sure enough, Kumo peeked her head out of the kitchen and started to walk towards the sofa. However, she noticed Kumo was limping. _Uh oh. That’s new_. Kumo moved slower than before, refusing to put weight to her front paw. Kumo ambled right up to Lin and seemed to unsteadily collapse rather than comfortably lie down.

“What’s wrong?” She placed her laptop aside and looked down at the cat. Kumo was laying on Lin’s foot, looking back at her with sad blue eyes. 

“Mow…” Kumo meowed, but softer than before. 

Lin felt bad for the cat.

“Here, Kumo,” Reaching down she picked up Kumo. She held the cat out in front of her, Kumo’s two front legs sticking straight out and the rest of her body dangling like a ragdoll. Lin turned the cat side to side and didn’t see anything wrong with it. She put Kumo on her lap and attempted to stand the cat up as if it had just fallen over and could be stood upright again. 

“Can you please stand up for me, _kitty?_ ” She began to talk to the cat, unknowingly getting closer to that baby-talk voice each time she called the cat kitty. Each time she tried to stand Kumo up, Kumo sunk down into a loaf position. Lin frowned, scratching her head. _What am I supposed to do? Is it broken? I can’t let Kya come home to a broken cat._

Then Lin remembered their talk from a week ago when Kya officially asked to move in. If Lin couldn’t take care of Kumo, Kya might reconsider staying with her. Kya asked her to _just try_ with Kumo, and if she came home to an injured cat how was that going to look? She quickly reached for her phone on, did a simple google search, and called the first place it suggested.

“Hi, you’ve reached Republic City Veterinary Hospital. Our hours are from 8 am to 7 pm. Press 2 to leave a message and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.”

 _I don’t want to leave a message, I need to go in_. She hung up and tried the next option.

“This is Yue Bay Pet Clinic’s after-hours answering machine. We’re open Monday through Saturday 9 am to 7 pm. Press 1 to leave a message, 2 for a prescription refill, and three for emergency visits.”

Lin pressed three. The phone rang. And rang. And rang. Nobody came to pick it up. She became impatient. “Why have an emergency option if you’re not going to pick up?” she yelled at the phone, beginning to get frustrated. She hung up and tried another place. 

“This is the Veterinary Center of Republic City. We are currently closed right now but – “ 

_Nope_. She tried the next place, the place after that, the place after that, and even the place after that. No luck. Nothing was open and no other places had an emergency option. She looked at the last place on the search results list and hit call.

“Hello? This is the Bayside Veterinary Hospital. Can I help you?”

“Uh – Yes! Yes, I have an emergency with my cat.”

“We do offer emergency visits. Can you please describe what is wrong. Is the animal breathing?”

Lin checked. Kumo was licking at her paws.

“Yes, she’s breathing.”

“Has the animal eaten anything poisonous?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Is the animal injured?”

“Yes – something is wrong with her front leg.”

“Do you know if the leg is broken? Is there any bleeding?”

Lin used her free hand to probe Kumo’s leg and checked her pawpad to see if she had stepped on anything. 

“No, I can’t find any breaks. I don’t think she’s stepped in anything either.”

“What seems to be the problem, then? “

“My cat is limping, and I don’t know why. She was fine maybe an hour ago but now she can’t put weight on her front right leg. I don’t know what to do.”

“Is the animal in any obvious pain?”

Kumo yawned.

“No, I don’t think so but – “

“Ma’am, then I’m not sure this is an emergency. If you’d like to make an appointment then I can –“

“Don’t you ‘ma’am’ me. This _is_ an emergency!” She got heated with the receptionist.

“If the animal is not in life-threatening situation, I’m afraid it does not qualify to be admitted for an emergency visit.”

“What am I supposed to do, then? Nothing?” she snapped.

“Have you tried calling other – “ 

“I’ve called them all. None of them are open or picking up.”

“Okay, then why don’t you bring you cat in to be seen in the morning?”

“And just wait all night while Kumo is in pain?” she said incredulously. 

“If the animal doesn’t seem to be in immediate distress, it should be fine overnight.” the receptionist offered.

Lin was about to tear into the poor receptionist when she felt Kumo press her forehead into her stomach. She gave Lin a little headbutt and emitted a classic _mrrrrrp_.

“Hello?”

Lin had forgotten she was on the phone.

“Fine.” Lin answered, and hung up. She turned her attention to Kumo again who was still pressing herself against Lin. 

“ _Good kitty_ ” she said aloud, and scratched behind Kumo’s ears. Lin sat there and began to forget about the unhelpful phone calls and her paperwork. She became engrossed in petting Kumo. She scratched behind her ears and petted the length of Kumo’s body. Lin scratched under her chin and Kumo lifted her head up in bliss, closing her eyes and purring. 

“Some street cat you are.” She joked.

In the midst of their little moment, Kumo’s ears perked and Lin heard the sound of the front door unlock. In came Kya.

“Hi, honey” she said, with her back turned, locking the door. When she turned around, she saw Lin with her paperwork scattered all over the table, her laptop pushed away with a black screen, and Kumo sitting right on Lin’s lap. Both of them stared at Kya like they had been caught red-handed. 

“Awww, are you giving Kumo some pets?” Kya said.

“She jumped up on me.” Lin blurted. That was just a lie.

“I see,” Kya said, a smile crossing her lips. After taking off her shoes and putting the keys on the counter, she came over to the couch. She plopped down next to Lin and began to pet Kumo. 

“How was your day?” 

“ _I have to tell you something_.” Lin ignored her question.

Kya removed her hand from the cat, and looked directly at Lin. 

“What is it?” Kya had a serious expression on her face.

“It’s about the cat.”

“What’s wrong?” concern colored her words.

“Kumo is limping.”

“Oh no, when did that start?”

“Maybe an hour ago. I called every vet in Republic City but they’re all closed. And the one emergency place said it wasn’t an emergency and that it could wait until tomorrow.”

“Is Kumo in pain at all?”

“I don’t know, but she’s been purring and stuff. It’s her front right leg. She let me touch it earlier.”

“Then maybe she’ll be okay until then.” Kya suggested.

“Do you think so?”

“Yeah, I think so. We can get her to a vet tomorrow after work.”

“Okay.” 

Kya smiled at Lin and stood up.

“I’m going to eat something and shower before bed. Today was exhaaaausting.” Kya headed to the bedroom, presumably to change out of her scrubs before doing anything else. Lin still didn’t feel right about the situation. Kya was a nurse, but she wasn’t a _cat_ nurse. What if something really was wrong with Kumo? She’s watched enough vet shows with Kya on Animal Planet to know animals were in the worst pain when they didn’t seem like they were in pain at all. 

Lin followed after Kya, holding Kumo to her chest like a baby. 

“Kya?” 

“Yeah?” she said in the middle of pulling her shirt over her head.

“I think Kumo should sleep in here tonight.”

Kya discarded her shirt and put her hands on her hips. _Well, look whose coming around_ , Kya thought. Her first instinct was to tease Lin, and say something like _Does Linny want to snuggle with her little kitty?_ but she held back. The look on Lin’s face was so earnest, and she didn’t want to push her back on her progress. Instead, she gave Lin a little kiss on the cheek.

“Okay, honey”

Lin gave her a tiny smile in response before setting the cat down.

“Oh, Kya one more thing!” Lin said as if suddenly remembering something.

“What is it?”

Lin quickly reached out a hand and snapped Kya’s bra strap before moving out of reach.

“Hey!”

“That's payback for the cat video!” Lin called from the living room.

**-Later That Night-**

While Kya was showering, Lin dragged Kumo’s cat bed into their room. She placed it right next to her side of the bed _just in case_. When Kya was done showering, she wolfed down the soup Lin heated up for her and shortly after, they both went to bed. Most days, they both came home exhausted. Kya had barely told Lin about her day at work before getting right to sleep (which she did nearly as soon as she hit the pillow). Lin understood this, and it was why they both preferred mornings. Kya and her were both early risers and preferred to talk in the mornings. The only real difference in their routines was that Kya never seemed to have problems falling asleep. As soon as she hit the pillow, out like a light. Lin, though usually just as tired, normally took a while to actually get to sleep. Sometimes she also just couldn’t sleep. Tonight seemed like it would be one of those nights.

Lin tossed and turned but could just not get comfortable. She’s done this for entire nights sometimes, waking up just as exhausted if not worse in the morning. Lin sat up, trying to arrange her pillows differently, hoping that would do something.

“Mow?” Kumo was awake.

“Shhh” Lin replied

“Mow…” 

Lin peered over the edge of the bed to see Kumo curled up, holding up a limp paw. She looked up pleadingly. Lin turned towards Kya.

“Kya?”

No response. 

“Kya?” ahe repeated and gave her girlfriend a light tap on the shoulder.

“Okay, she’s asleep. Here, Kumo.” Lin leaned down and picked up the cat, giving her a few ear scratches. She took Kumo's paw into her hand and massaged her little foot.

“Does this hurt?”

Kumo purred. Lin smiled seeing the cat enjoy a little paw rub.

“ _What are we going to do with you? Hmm, Kumo kitty?_ ”

Lin settled back down, setting the cat right beside her. 

“I bet it’s more comfortable up here anyway.”

“Mrrrrrp”

“I know, huh? Try and get some sleep.”

“Mrp”

“I’ll call in tomorrow, I’m going to get you to a vet first thing, okay?”

She paused. 

“I never call in sick. Don’t tell anyone.”

She was having a full conversation with the cat at this point.

“Okay, goodnight.” Lin closed her eyes, trying to sleep. After a few minutes, she felt Kumo shift beside her and then a familiar pressure on her chest before drifting to sleep.

**-Next Morning-**

Lin woke up first. Kumo had been awake, too but had kept her head on Lin’s chest. After a stretch and a yawn, Lin patted Kumo on the head.

“ _Does Kumo want something to eat?_ ”

Lin stood up, throwing on her robe, and carried Kumo to the kitchen. She didn’t want her to walk if it was causing her pain. When she entered the kitchen, she saw Kumo’s dish from last night still had food in it. A lot of food actually. She set Kumo down to eat, but Kumo seemed disinterested. Lin picked at her hand again. _This is more serious than I thought. She’s not eating._ Lin got her phone and called Mako immediately, telling him to cover for her today because she was sick. He was astonished but didn’t ask any questions. Next, she called Bayside Veterinary Hospital.

“Morning, honey” Kya came up behind Lin while she was still on the phone. She wrapped her arms around her waist and rested her head on her shoulder. Lin finished up the call, then set her phone down.

“Good morning”

“Calling the vet?”

“Yes, they’ve got an opening at eleven.”

“Eleven?” Kya moved back and Lin turned to face her, “Is there anything later? My shift doesn’t even until five today.”

“I know, I can take her. I called in.”

Kya’s eyes went wide.

“You called in sick?”

“Yes, I wanted to get her seen as soon as possible. I don’t think she’s been eating either. That’s still her food from last night.”

They both looked at the cat. Kumo was standing by her bowl expectantly.

“Have you tried petting her?”

“I’ve been petting her, yes.”

“No, I mean while she eats. She wont eat unless you pet her. See,” Kya bent over to pet Kumo and she finally started to eat.

“You’ve got to be joking.”

“No, that’s become kind of her thing. She only wants me to pet her while she’s eating.”

Kumo was crunching away.

“I’m not going to stand over her and pet her all the time while she’s eating. She has to eat on her own.”

“Oh, yeah?” Kya said, “And who were you talking to last night?”

“I wasn’t talking to anyone.” Lin feigned confusion.

“Were you sleeptalking?”

“It’s possible.”

“So, you were calling the cat _Kumo kitty_ in your sleep?”

“Yes.”

“Lin.”

“Kya.”

“If you were talking to the cat you can say it, you know?” Kya grinned.

“I did not talk to the cat.”

“And I suppose you didn’t lift the cat into the bed and let her sleep on you either? She must’ve jumped up on you with her hurt leg, right?” Kya raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, so _maybe_ I talked to the cat.” Lin looked away, turning red, “But I was worried her bed was too uncomfortable with her leg.”

Kya laughed.

“You’re very sweet, but you don’t have to justify bringing the cat in the bed. You know I don’t mind.”

“I wanted to make sure the cat was okay. We don’t know if she’s really hurt or not.”

“You’re very cute when you’re flustered,” Kya put her hand on Lin’s arm, “and it’s very sweet that you’re worried.”

“I’m just concerned…and I’m trying.” Lin admitted with a shy smile.

Kya’s heart just about melted.

“You’re a very good cat mom, honey.”

**-Epilogue-**

Kya went to work later that day and Lin took Kumo to the vet. Lin explained what was wrong, and let Kumo out of the carrier onto the examination table. The vet was able to examine her leg and found nothing outwardly wrong with it. Lin then put Kumo onto the floor to show the doctor how she had been limping…but she walked just fine. The vet followed up with an x-ray just to be sure, but again, nothing seemed wrong. The vet had said a cat her age could have arthritis, but it seemed more like she was limping for attention. Leaving the vet, Lin could not believe it. The cat was limping around just for head scratches and pets. She had been bested by a cat. She was annoyed, but could not stay mad at Kumo.

In the coming weeks, Lin continued to talk to the cat out loud around Kya. While Kya would tease her occasionally, Lin accepted her status as cat mom and called the cat _Kumo kitty_ or _baby_ in full seriousness. She no longer cared if her neighbors heard. Kya saw how Lin would interact with the cat and she loved it. It made her happy Kumo brought out such a sweet side of Lin and that she got to live with such a caring girlfriend.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first return to fanfiction writing since 2015! I'd love to get your feedback in the comments.
> 
> Special thanks to FyreArcana for their suggestions and for listening to me ramble about ideas!
> 
> Also, 100% Kya is the type of facebook mom to repost minion memes unironically


End file.
